Ben Fried started as a Streetsblog reporter in 2008 and led the site as editor-in-chief from 2010 to 2018. He lives in Ditmas Park, Brooklyn, with his wife.
Ben Fried
Recent Posts
Ad Nauseam: What “Cash for Clunkers” Hath Wrought
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The government’s Cash for Clunkers program officially begins today, but car dealers have been running ads like this one for a while already. They have to keep the public informed: Now you can trade in your old car and buy a brand-new SUV or pick-up truck with a hefty assist from Uncle Sam. Here we […]
Advocating for a Transpo Bill That Keeps Transit Riders Moving
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Large cities continue to grapple with big gaps in their transit budgets. Graphic: Transit Riders for Public Transportation. Advocates in cities across the country are mobilizing today to support increased federal funding for transit service. Transit Riders for Public Transportation (TRPT) a national coalition focused on bringing "environmental justice and civil rights priorities to the […]
Cartoon Tuesday: Beware of the Ouchies
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After reading about a new Pew Poll that found 88 percent of Americans believe they can’t live without a car, I couldn’t help thinking of this cartoon from John Akre — who also gave us Cars for Hats. Car dependence has never looked so terrifying.
Boxer: Collect Fees on Driving Through ‘Honor System’
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Another must-read from last week’s Reuters Infrastructure Summit: Barbara Boxer, the California Democrat who will be responsible for shepherding the next transportation bill through the Senate, says she’s open to a mileage tax and to indexing the gas tax to inflation to generate new revenue. It’s great to hear a legislator in Boxer’s position voice […]
Steven Chu Forced to Recant Belief in Higher Gas Prices
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The indignities are piling up for Steven Chu, the Nobel laureate Secretary of Energy whom environmentalists applauded as one of Obama’s best cabinet picks. His security detail won’t let the lifelong cyclist bike to work. And on Earth Day, he fielded questions like this one (via Talking Points Memo) during a House hearing on the […]
Rail Across America
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You’ve probably seen this already. It’s the latest graphic representation of the nation’s proposed high-speed rail corridors, and it’s been all over the transportation blogosphere since President Obama stood beside it at a press conference yesterday. Those corridors are likely to change somewhat as the administration refines its new strategy for high-speed rail, says Transport […]
The Physics and Ethics of a Rolling Stop
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. In 1982, the state of Idaho legalized the "rolling stop," an adjustment to the rules of the road that lets cyclists treat stop signs as yield signs without becoming scofflaws. Nearly three decades later, the rule has a demonstrated track record of safety, but Idaho is still the only state with such a law. […]
Wiki Wednesday: Getting Streets in Shape With Road Diets
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This morning Sarah wrote about the excessive width of many American roads, which makes speeding all too tempting for drivers. So I’m going to bookend my day with this StreetsWiki entry on road diets — the practice of reducing the number of travel lanes — from author Andy Hamilton: Photo: Dan Burden. Road diets are […]
Petition: Support a Climate Bill That Invests in Green Transportation
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At the end of March, representatives Henry Waxman and Ed Markey introduced an ambitious federal climate bill. This is the real deal — the legislative centerpiece of President Obama’s effort to combat global warming. Transportation contributes about a third of all greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S., so any climate bill will have to green […]
Obama Falls Prey to Ribbon-Cutting Syndrome
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Obama greets construction workers at a DC photo op. Photo: AFP via Infrastructurist. At a press event in DC yesterday, President Obama touted the two thousandth transportation project to receive federal stimulus funds. I’m speculating a bit here, but the White House probably had some discretion when choosing which item to highlight for this milestone. […]
Streetfilms: London’s Campaign for People-First Public Spaces
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In 2002, then-mayor of London Ken Livingstone launched the 100 Public Spaces Programme, a campaign to better realize the potential of the city’s public realm. With guidance from Jan Gehl, the initiative emphasized reclaiming space for pedestrians and enhancing street life. Soon after Boris Johnson defeated Livingstone in last year’s election, the new mayor shook […]
Livable Streets Promised Land
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Here’s a nice visual of what cities will look like when the livable streets movement has completely emerged from the wilderness (sorry for the extended metaphor, couldn’t help it today). GOOD Magazine ran this photosim done by our very own Carly Clark in their transportation issue, with text by Streetsblog Editor-in-Chief Aaron Naparstek. They’ve got […]